Carl Joe Williams was born in Uptown New Orleans, LA (b.1970). Art was Williams' first love. At fourteen, he was accepted into the New Orleans Center for Creative Art (NOCCA) where he received his formal training. Upon completing high school, Williams continued his studies at the Atlanta College of Art.
In Atlanta, Williams flourished in his craft; graduating in 1994, produced solo exhibitions, participated in several group exhibitions and completed several public art projects. Williams’ work has been displayed in several venues in both New Orleans and Atlanta, including Journeys, an installation at the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (Atlanta, GA). Williams’ Sculptural Trees public art installation (Metairie, LA) was described as reminiscent of “lollipops in a Candyland forest,” with their custom acrylic light boxes attached to crepe myrtles.
In 2013, Williams had a solo exhibition at the George Ohr Museum in Biloxi, MI and was a recipient of the Joan Mitchell NOLA Studio Artist Residence Program. He was selected to participate in the 2014 Crystal Bridges State of the Art Discovering American Art Now exhibition. Williams is the founding member of Blights Out. Blights Out is a community- and artist-led initiative to activate community agency in neighborhood development.